The present invention is generally directed to a multi-purpose arena that can be used for sports and other entertainment. Most arenas are designed with a sport-type activity as the main use for the arena. In fact, most arenas are used for sport-type activities for only a small portion of the days that the facility is in use. Most of the time, the arena is used for public entertainment uses such as concerts, speakers, theatre, productions, graduations, assemblies and other non-sport uses. Unfortunately, by designing an arena as a sports facility, the arena has characteristics that make it less than ideal for public entertainment uses.
The major shortcomings of a sports arena when the facility is used for non-sports type, public entertainment uses are poor acoustics, a sound system than cannot overcome the poor acoustics, poor sight lines and seating angles, large distances between the audience and the performers, limited facilities for the comfort and convenience of the performers, lack of staging options, seats that lack acceptable comfort for non-sports activity and an inability to tailor the size of the facility to match the space requirements for the particular use of the arena. The above difficulties are significant as in most arenas, sport type activities account for less that one half of the total use time for the arena.
The multi-purpose arena of the present invention provides an arena that is designed to accommodate the multitude of uses that today's arenas are required to handle. The size or seating capacity of the arena can be varied to suit the particular use of the arena. The seats in the arena are oriented to the area where the entertainment is to take place to avoid seating areas that are not usable for many entertainment applications. The arena is designed to have an interior shape that is non-symmetrical with irregular dimensions. Such a design for the interior of the arena reduces the ability of sound waves to be reflected from surfaces in the arena in a manner where the sound waves are directed back to the performers at substantially their initial intensity. This shape for the interior of the arena avoids concave surfaces in the interior of the arena that can focus sound into acoustic “hot spots” that produce undesirable sound characteristics. The shape of the interior of the arena is designed to significantly reduce standing wave and rhythmic wave sound patterns that produce undesirable sound characteristics in many arenas. A standing wave is an acoustical phenomenon where the amplification and clarity of a sound wave is increased or reduced in localized areas. A standing wave produces hot spots (increased) or dead spots (reduced) in an arena. Such hot and dead spots are objectionable to patrons or performers that are in a location where such phenomenon occur. A rhythmic wave is best described as the objectionable background buzz that is heard in a room or in an arena when the sound in the room is not properly controlled or balanced. The seats are comfortable and with good sight lines to the entertainment area. The acoustics of the arena can be varied or tuned to enhance the particular event that is being presented in the arena. The managing of sound or acoustical characteristics is an important aspect of the invention. Sound and acoustics are complex technical concepts that are difficult to explain. To assist with these concepts, the text “Handbook of Acoustical Measurement and Noise Control” by Cyril M. Harris, published by McGraw-Hill, Inc. is hereby incorporated by reference in this disclosure.